Teacher Tom
@tomhobson.bsky.social
I worry about our young people who are, increasingly, living in a world that never forgets. Growing up, we were often warned about how our behaviors would wind up on our "permanent record," but that was a boogyman compared to today. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #preschool
The Ability to Forget and Be Forgotten
In her book Monsters Claire Dederer considers the question of what to do about artists who have created beloved works of a...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 30, 2026 at 9:44 AM
I worry about our young people who are, increasingly, living in a world that never forgets. Growing up, we were often warned about how our behaviors would wind up on our "permanent record," but that was a boogyman compared to today. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #preschool
That we need one another in order to take advantage of our great big brains shouldn't surprise any early childhood educators. #PlayBasedLearning #EarlyChildhoodEducation #earlylearning #preschool
Humans Are Ultra Social Learning Machines
Most of us take it for granted that human beings are smarter than other animals. After all, we have exceptionally large brai...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 29, 2026 at 2:51 PM
That we need one another in order to take advantage of our great big brains shouldn't surprise any early childhood educators. #PlayBasedLearning #EarlyChildhoodEducation #earlylearning #preschool
This is one of the most difficult parts of working with young children. We dust them off and bandage their wounds, then worry if we've somehow, in our solicitude, prevented them from learning what they needed to learn. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
It's a Pretty Good Joke
There is no evidence that Albert Einstein said, "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and ...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 28, 2026 at 1:40 PM
This is one of the most difficult parts of working with young children. We dust them off and bandage their wounds, then worry if we've somehow, in our solicitude, prevented them from learning what they needed to learn. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
Rog was in love with Marian, who loved him back . . . But one day, Rog arrived to find that Marian had changed her mind. She was, she informed him, going to marry Titus instead. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
Cobbling Together a Perfectly Age-Appropriate Curriculum
Rog was in love with Marian, who loved him back. It was one of those cute preschool romances where children were exploring t...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 27, 2026 at 1:08 PM
Rog was in love with Marian, who loved him back . . . But one day, Rog arrived to find that Marian had changed her mind. She was, she informed him, going to marry Titus instead. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
And we are especially irresponsible when we try to blame the kids themselves, or their parents, who are, in most cases, products of this very same school system that manufactures at least as much alienation as it does education. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #EarlyLearning #preschool
Countering Alienation With Connection: Play Can Save Humanity
Yesterday, I listened to Pink Floyd's masterpiece The Wall . The album came out in 1979. I was a high school senior and on ...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 26, 2026 at 2:24 PM
And we are especially irresponsible when we try to blame the kids themselves, or their parents, who are, in most cases, products of this very same school system that manufactures at least as much alienation as it does education. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #EarlyLearning #preschool
"(The mind) reaches out spontaneously toward what can nourish either intelligence or imagination. Perhaps it is part of nature and, without being taught, shares nature’s intentions." ~Joseph Wood Krutch #playbasedlearning #EarlyChildhoodEducation #earlylearning #preschool
She Was Meant for Life
Many young children arrive on our doorsteps ready to attend to us, to what we point out to them, to sing our songs, to play ...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 23, 2026 at 1:14 PM
"(The mind) reaches out spontaneously toward what can nourish either intelligence or imagination. Perhaps it is part of nature and, without being taught, shares nature’s intentions." ~Joseph Wood Krutch #playbasedlearning #EarlyChildhoodEducation #earlylearning #preschool
What happens when I manage to control all, or most, of a valuable resource? #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
The Natural State of a Hoarder is Misery
Preschool is a time for children to experiment with community and their place in it. One of the things they experiment with ...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 21, 2026 at 1:02 PM
What happens when I manage to control all, or most, of a valuable resource? #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
There was no reason for me to be close, so I kept my distance. There was no reason for me to be a part of their game, so I remained invisible. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
Agreements We Make With One Another
There was no reason for me to be close, so I kept my distance. There was no reason for me to be a part of their game, so I r...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 20, 2026 at 2:04 PM
There was no reason for me to be close, so I kept my distance. There was no reason for me to be a part of their game, so I remained invisible. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
Parents and educators often want their children to be responsible. #playbasedlearning #earlylearning #earlychildhoodeducation #preschool
Because We Live in a Society
My wife and I lived with dogs for most of our 40 years of marriage. Our first dog came before our daughter was born. He was ...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 19, 2026 at 1:30 PM
Parents and educators often want their children to be responsible. #playbasedlearning #earlylearning #earlychildhoodeducation #preschool
Preschoolers engage in daily converse about virtue. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #Preschool
"To Daily Converse About Virtue"
"Well, although I do not suppose that either of us knows anything really beautiful and good," said Socrates, according to hi...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 16, 2026 at 3:25 PM
Preschoolers engage in daily converse about virtue. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #Preschool
Longer school days, more academic instruction, developmentally inappropriate expectations, less time outdoors, standardization, and high stakes testing are causing children’s brains to stop growing. #PlayBasedLearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
Brains Do Not Grow in Captivity
We now know enough about the brain to realize that its mystery will always remain. Like a work of art, we exceed our materia...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 15, 2026 at 2:08 PM
Longer school days, more academic instruction, developmentally inappropriate expectations, less time outdoors, standardization, and high stakes testing are causing children’s brains to stop growing. #PlayBasedLearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
What we do know, however, is that whatever the future holds, we will need those critical thinkers. That's what educators in South Korea are thinking about. Maybe we should too. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #EarlyLearning #preschool
I Fought the Temptation to "Correct" Them
When my grandmother-in-law died, she left us with a set of The Great Books, a 54 volume set of renowned works by European me...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 14, 2026 at 2:45 PM
What we do know, however, is that whatever the future holds, we will need those critical thinkers. That's what educators in South Korea are thinking about. Maybe we should too. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #EarlyLearning #preschool
They question things that we've stopped questioning, not necessarily because they're consciously pursuing truth, but rather because the world's conventions are not yet self-evident to them. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #EarlyLearning #preschool
The Examined Life
Most young children go through a stage in which they ask, "Why?" No matter what you answer, be it thoughtfully, jokingly, or...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 13, 2026 at 1:31 PM
They question things that we've stopped questioning, not necessarily because they're consciously pursuing truth, but rather because the world's conventions are not yet self-evident to them. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #EarlyLearning #preschool
Your children already know how to be successful, and that may require a lot of failure. What they need from you is to love them, to trust them, and to keep them safe. Otherwise, relax and get out of their way. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
Your Children Already Know How to Be Successful
I think most of us, if asked to define "success," would think deeply enough to consider more than the capacity to acquire gr...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 12, 2026 at 1:55 PM
Your children already know how to be successful, and that may require a lot of failure. What they need from you is to love them, to trust them, and to keep them safe. Otherwise, relax and get out of their way. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
Yet, the children, in being distracted, are only doing what nature has designed them to do. #playbasedlearning #EarlyChildhoodEducation #earlylearning #preschool
We Have Always Lived in an Age of Distraction
I recently took a book outside, setting up in a shaded chaise lounger with a cup of coffee. The sun was out. It was going to...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 8, 2026 at 1:09 PM
Yet, the children, in being distracted, are only doing what nature has designed them to do. #playbasedlearning #EarlyChildhoodEducation #earlylearning #preschool
When I told her I'm a preschool teacher, I added, "All our art is process art. It's really just science." And she replied, 'That's how every artist approaches their work. We're all scientists." #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
All Artists are Scientists
I was chatting with an artist, a painter, at her studio and gallery, discussing her process. I always ask artists about thei...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 7, 2026 at 1:07 PM
When I told her I'm a preschool teacher, I added, "All our art is process art. It's really just science." And she replied, 'That's how every artist approaches their work. We're all scientists." #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
But most importantly, I think, is that we were learning that autonomy isn't the opposite of community. Indeed, we were learning that a healthy community is what makes autonomy possible. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
We Had Built a School and We Were Our Own Teachers
When I was a college sophomore, I had four roommates. We'd all been randomly assigned to the same dormitory floor as freshme...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 6, 2026 at 2:47 PM
But most importantly, I think, is that we were learning that autonomy isn't the opposite of community. Indeed, we were learning that a healthy community is what makes autonomy possible. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
Among the first games we play with our babies is some version of give-and-take. #playbasedlearning #earlylearning #earlychildhoodeducation #preschool
Learning a New Game
Among the first games we play with our babies is some version of give-and-take. We show an object to them and they take it ...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 5, 2026 at 12:52 PM
Among the first games we play with our babies is some version of give-and-take. #playbasedlearning #earlylearning #earlychildhoodeducation #preschool
While it may be impossible to fully understand the experience of other species, all we have to do to better understand other humans, including children, is to be curious and to listen with the intention of understanding. #PlayBasedLearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning, #preschool
"Not Just Allies, But Accomplices"
Fin whales, the second largest animals on earth after blue whales, can communicate across entire oceans. They are capable of...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 2, 2026 at 12:44 PM
While it may be impossible to fully understand the experience of other species, all we have to do to better understand other humans, including children, is to be curious and to listen with the intention of understanding. #PlayBasedLearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning, #preschool
A couple months back, within the span of a few weeks, two bad things happened to me. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
Our Worst Days Become Our Best Stories
A couple months back, within the span of a few weeks, two bad things happened to me: I rode my bike into a nearly invisible,...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
October 1, 2026 at 2:11 PM
A couple months back, within the span of a few weeks, two bad things happened to me. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
Just as the answering machine became its own kind of slippery slope, the advent of GPS has virtually eliminated the necessity of surrendering to being lost, and reduced the opportunity to experience the unexpected. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
What We Lose When We Can't Get Lost
There are a couple of inventions that have made my lived experience less pleasant, and I'm not talking about smartphones or ...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
September 30, 2026 at 2:06 PM
Just as the answering machine became its own kind of slippery slope, the advent of GPS has virtually eliminated the necessity of surrendering to being lost, and reduced the opportunity to experience the unexpected. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
We want children to get good at things, to master the ground rules, to produce measurable outcomes, often before they've had enough time to screw around with the world. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
Childhood is the Time for Falling in Love
I'm currently planning an exciting DIY project. The wicker armrests and backs of our patio furniture are coming apart. It's...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
September 29, 2026 at 2:09 PM
We want children to get good at things, to master the ground rules, to produce measurable outcomes, often before they've had enough time to screw around with the world. #playbasedlearning #earlychildhoodeducation #earlylearning #preschool
"They will learn things in school, although most of it will remain in school, stored there in the classrooms, teachers, and classmates. Their important connections will be made with the people, places, & things from life itself." #PlayBasedLearning #earlylearning #earlychildhoodeducation #preschool
Extending Themselves Into the World
Karntakuringu Jakurrpa I've been driving cars for 45 years. It's been decades since I spent time and energy thinking about...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
September 28, 2026 at 2:04 PM
"They will learn things in school, although most of it will remain in school, stored there in the classrooms, teachers, and classmates. Their important connections will be made with the people, places, & things from life itself." #PlayBasedLearning #earlylearning #earlychildhoodeducation #preschool
Maybe that's because the "productivity" of an early childhood educator isn't measured in the number of children she can process. The relationship is the product. And that's why so many of us know that we are rich even when our paychecks are modest.
Our North Star
The profit motive is good, I suppose, for some things, like televisions. If the demand for TVs goes up, then the big manufac...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
September 25, 2026 at 2:06 PM
Maybe that's because the "productivity" of an early childhood educator isn't measured in the number of children she can process. The relationship is the product. And that's why so many of us know that we are rich even when our paychecks are modest.
We need our emotions in order to make sound judgements and our greater doubt should be saved for those who do not credit their emotions because they are more likely, according to science, to be the irrational ones.
Without Emotion Reasonable Decisions are Impossible
There is more reason in your body than in your best wisdom. ~Friedrich Nietzsche The stereotypical argument used to excl...
teachertomsblog.blogspot.com
September 24, 2026 at 12:54 PM
We need our emotions in order to make sound judgements and our greater doubt should be saved for those who do not credit their emotions because they are more likely, according to science, to be the irrational ones.